TURNBERRY, Scotland -- It's cold-truth time for golf now that we've had a day to catch our breath from the Tom Watson Open, won by Stewart Cink.Watson's run at the British Open was a great moment for golf, and particularly needed in a tournament where Tiger Woods failed and Phil Mickelson stayed home. But while everyone marveled at a 59-year old stepping up, what did that mean?
It was fun to watch at the time, but it didn't say much about the game.
It said that the younger generation pulled a vanishing act when its two leaders were gone.
And it said that if golf wants to be considered an actual sport, and not just a refined, difficult skill set, then it has a lot of explaining to do.
Early in the week, Watson said that golf is a young person's game. By the end, after watching the young people, he was enlisting the media to try to fight against the Open's age-rule, which suggests that 60-somethings can't compete.
So let's start with the younger generation because Watson -- and Mark Calcavecchia and Vijay Singh -- set up a battle of the generations in this tournament.
I think what we learned is that Tiger's greatness has been hiding the shortcomings of the guys he's beating.
Turnberry is a course well-suited for the older guys, because it doesn't play long. You can't just rip it to shreds, as Lee Westwood put it. Watson said that his experience on the links course made a big difference because many of the younger American players haven't seen that type of course.
Calcavecchia, by the way, who's 49, said that experience is completely overrated.
But whatever. Watson knew to bounce the ball up onto the greens, using the hard fairways, while the younger Americans rolled up sleeves and pounded their usual high-arcing shots that were affected by the wind.
"I see some of the kids, they're not playing the shot the way I would play it,'' Watson said earlier in the week. "Take some of the element of risk out of play. That's the way I think I'm playing.''
Well, is there some reason why today's young American players couldn't have figured that out? It sounds like the same problem with American tennis, where the young guys can only flex muscles, and not use strategy.
Watson's success was a condemnation of today's younger players. With Woods and Mickelson out of the way, you would think everyone from the current generation would have been salivating. This was their big chance.
Instead, they hid meekly while Watson made his move. Cink is hardly washed up at 36, but he's not one of the young supposed-stars, either.
He said that no one had ever included him in the talk about greatest players never to win a major.
Sergio Garcia. Rory McIlroy. Anthony Kim. Hunter Mahan.
Couldn't one of those guys beat out a guy who just had his hip replaced? Couldn't one of them have even contended? At least Chris Wood did.
This generation surely has more depth than any past generation. But what about at the top of the game? Padraig Harrington has all but lost his swing. It was a grand time for a new superstar to emerge.
Not an old one.
Latest British Open Photos
In a handout picture released by the Asian Tour shows Stewart Cink of the US celebrates by kissing the golf ball during the 72nd hole of regulation play on the 18th green in the final round of the 138th British Open golf championship in Turnberry, Scotland, on July 19, 2009. Stewart Cink was aware he had spoiled the party at the British Open on July 19 but that did nothing to take away from his sense of achievement. The 36-year-old from Alabama, got the better of a weary Tom Watson in a four-hole British Open play-off to claim his debut major win on a day of high drama at Turnberry, denying his 59-year-old compatriot the chance to become the oldest major winner in history. RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE AFP PHOTO/HO/PAUL LAKATOS/ASIAN TOUR (Photo credit should read PAUL LAKATOS/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
In a handout picture released by the Asian Tour shows Stewart Cink of the US celebrates by kissing the golf ball during the 72nd hole of regulation play on the 18th green in the final round of the 138th British Open golf championship in Turnberry, Scotland, on July 19, 2009. Stewart Cink was aware he had spoiled the party at the British Open on July 19 but that did nothing to take away from his sense of achievement. The 36-year-old from Alabama, got the better of a weary Tom Watson in a four-hole British Open play-off to claim his debut major win on a day of high drama at Turnberry, denying his 59-year-old compatriot the chance to become the oldest major winner in history. RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE AFP PHOTO/HO/PAUL LAKATOS/ASIAN TOUR (Photo credit should read PAUL LAKATOS/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
US golfer Stewart Cink hugs the Claret Jug after winning the 138th British Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Course in south west Scotland, on July 19, 2009. TOPSHOTS/AFP PHOTO/Adrian Dennis (Photo credit should read ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
Tom Watson of the U.S. plays his third shot on the 18th hole during the final round of the British Open Golf Championship at the Turnberry Golf Club in Scotland, July 19, 2009. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh (BRITAIN SPORT GOLF)
Reuters
Stewart Cink of the US plays from the ninth tee during the final round of the British Open Golf championship, at the Turnberry golf course, Scotland, Sunday, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
AP
Stewart Cink of the US, right, reacts with his caddie Frank Williams after a birdie putt on the 18th green during the final round of the British Open Golf championship, at the Turnberry golf course, Scotland, Sunday, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
AP
The leaderboard is seen during a playoff between Tom Watson of the US and Stewart Cink of the US, following the final round of the British Open Golf championship, at the Turnberry golf course, Scotland, Sunday, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Rebecca Naden, Pool)
AP
The leaderboard is seen after a playoff between Tom Watson of the US and Stewart Cink of the US, following the final round of the British Open Golf championship, at the Turnberry golf course, Scotland, Sunday, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
AP
The leaderboard is seen during a playoff between Tom Watson of the US and Stewart Cink of the US, following the final round of the British Open Golf championship, at the Turnberry golf course, Scotland, Sunday, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
AP
USA's Tom Watson, left, and his caddie Neil Oxman look on as Stewart Cink of the United States, right, plays his final shot to win the fourth round round of the British Open Golf Championship at Turnberry Golf Club, Turnberry, Scotland Sunday July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/PA, Anthony Devlin) ** UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO SALES NO ARCHIVE **
PA
And can a guy seven weeks from turning 60 really do what Watson did if golf were an actual sport? All week, I saw John Daly smoking a cigarette on the 18th fairway and pushing a weight-loss procedure, and Calcavecchia talking about his wide base helping him putt, and his four beers a day.
Watson is surely in great shape for a 59-year old, saying he works out occasionally. But the muscular athlete (Woods) went home after two days.
It's about your definition of a sport, I guess. But if Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were to skip the U.S. Open, you would not see Jimmy Connors winning it. Joe Frazier could not compete for a title anymore.
If advanced age and lack of fitness don't eliminate you from the top level of the game, then it's hard to see how it's a sport.
In the end, that's just semantics, though, and maybe a good tavern-argument.
But of more serious concern to golf should be the shambles that Watson made of the younger generation with Tiger gone.
It's hard to imagine if Watson, say, had a bad Open in 1978, with the other stars of the day competing, that someone from the 1940s or '50s would have nearly won instead, especially if that someone's career had already wrapped up a quarter of a century earlier.
Maybe Watson had just one fluke week on a favorable course, but it just seemed strange that so few players from this century stood up at all.
So few seemed able to adapt their games.
At 39, Mickelson, who was home taking care of his sick wife, is already well past the young-gun age. Maybe no one will be there to clear him out of the way. Or if he just decides to go someday, then who knows?
Arnold Palmer might be ready to rise again.
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Comments (Page 1 of 2)
It was a great weekend to watch a class act almost win it!
Writers always need something to write about, so when they're really stuck, they just dip into the "contrarian" bag and try to come up with something, rathionial or otherwise, to to fill up space. The Young Guns should be ashamed of what Watson did? Yes, the game is lesser for lack of a great rivalry: Tiger has been marching toward a record number of victories in Major without the kind of head to head rivals that Nicklaus had. Without Tom Watson, Nicklaus would have won four more majors. Watson's performance this past week was one for the ages: his swing is as beautiful and flawless as it ever was. He consistenly drove it as long as Sergio Garcia, and on the first playoff hole, drive it 25 yaards past Cink, who is 6'4" and a big hitter. This is the greatness of golf: if you stay fit and focused, you can seemingly play forever. Bravo, Tom: the failure of some of the young players to challenge Tiger is a great loss to the game, and a benefit to Tiger. Watson's greatness has been reaffirmed in one of the greatest tournaments in in the history of the sport. Bravo, Tom: hold your head up and keep playing.
The "young guns" are more into their own pocketbooks, than they are into learning to play the game better. With huge endorsements, and tournament purses, they don't have to play well to make a great living. Watson is truly a great champion, who brings "class" to the game of golf. His second place finish was probably better for golf than Cink's win. Patch
To our friend Tom Watson,
You missed the trophy but still won the day.
That was absolutely beautiful.
Your followers in Santa Rosa, CA
Chris & Brandon Vinson
Couch, you're a douche bag. How about giving Watson the credit he deserves? Have you ever played golf? You'd know it is a sport if you did. Hitting a golf ball properly is one of the hardest things to do. It takes very little to make a bad shot and everything to go right to make a good one. Congratulations Mr Watson. I watched you play and it was great. You deserved every bit of it.
ONCE AGAIN, WRITERS MISSED THE BALL.
HEY GREG, HOW MANY BRITISH OPENS YOU PLAY IN?..I'LL TELL YOU, ZERO.
IF YOU EVER PLAYED GOLF BEFORE, YOU WOULDN'T OF SAID WHAT YOU DID. I FEEL SORRY FOR YOU, BECAUSE YOU JUST SHOWED WHOLE WORLD HOW STUPID YOU ARE.
T O M W A T S O N
IS ONE OF GREATEST GOLF PLAYERS OF ALL TIME.YES HE DID WHAT A LOT COULDN'T DO OVER WEEKEND. THAT WAS DUE TO DETERMINATION, AND HE REACHED DOWN WHEN HE HAD TOO... GO BACK TO SCHOOL GREG AND LEARN A NOTHER TRADE.
Lee Westwood gagged worse than Brother Tom..
I thougt he would have wilted by Saturday. I am here to say I was very wrong !!!What an emotional tournement. How tough waa it for Stewart Cink to realyy enjoy his win. Bt regardless, Tom Watson gave everyone a lesson in living life after 40.... I applaude you Mr Watson.
Greg Couch,
This has nothing to do with whether golf is a sport or not. What Tom Watson accomplished this past week is nothing short of miraculous! Forget about Tiger woods, the so-called young guns, etc. and just try and appreciate what you just witnessed. I've been a golfer and a golf fan for almost fifty years and I have never seen or did I think I would ever see what happened this past week. His strategy and execution were better than anyone else in the field. I'll be sixty-two this year and I know what it feels like when you get up in the morning. You're going to feel it too someday. Maybe then and only then will you realize how incredible of an achievment Mr. Tom Watson accomplished. He may not have the trophy but in the eyes of true golf fan he was the best one in the field last week!
I agree with the comment about the caliper of players Nicklaus faced vs Tiger. Tell me one player that compares to Palmer, Player, Watson, and Trevino that Tiger faces. If Nicklaus or watson faced the current players playing today they would both have double the victories. When Nicklaus lost he was a true gentleman as was Watson. If I ever saw Tiger Woods walk off the 18th green with his arm around the guy who just beat him I'd fall over. I beleive it was watson who said Nicklaus was more gracious in defeat then victory. Watson is what every young golfer should aspire to be not some club throwing, ranting hot head.
Gregg,
You have to have pretty big balls to write such a piece of sh**!!! which shows in your profession that knowing anything your writing about isn't mandatory!! Were you a hall monior in high school or what? Did you write for the college newspaper?? Try winning the secratry's flight at your local muny's club championship then get back to us you fuc***** moron!!
hey rick,what a nice man you are you idot, tiger woods is a jerk off-throws clubs, cusses in front of kids and if anyone moves, etc. he goes nuts. tiger could not carry tom, lee, jack or arnies' bag and hey baby, lets play for some serious money!
Did I back Tiger in my post?? You fu**** idiot I am a Jack Nicklaus fan as well as all of the old traditional players. But in the world of today's felon athletes Tiger Woods is about the best your going to get along with golf as a total sport!! My kids are just learning to play golf and are already familiar with the history of such a great game!! Shane save your money, I could give you two a side!!!
TOM WATSON WON THE HEARTS OF A MILLON PEOPLE THIS WEEKEND.I THINK WHY NOT LET PEOPLE OVER SIXTY PLAY IN TOURNAMENTS YOU STILL HAVE TO MAKE THE CUT.
Well you can see by the bulk of the comments that most that bothered to read this know that you are a clueless moron. Obviously not a Golfer as your disdain to even write about it is obvious. Golf, my moronic-little-writer, is the pinnacle sport where if your timing is off in the smallest increment poor shots results. Golf is a combination of chess like strategy combined with pure physical ability. Sure jerk-off, can you swing at 130 mph and hit it square, of course not! Tiger looses more than 80 percent,just like Jack, plenty of competition, he didn't make the cut this time as great as he is. The "young guns" have a lot less experience and the open is the ONLY place Tom could compete against these guys, period, he would tell you and it is a testament to his dedication as well as being the best links player in history. You Sir are a complete idiot. You need to go back to waiting tables like you did while you wasted time getting a journalism degree! Wow you are one narrow minded dumb a**!
What a great tribute to Tom Watson! Everyone is in agreement that he did a remarkable job and was very tired toward the end.
Now...can we please get passed his loss and focus on the win that Stewart Cink had? How sad to win a great tournament and have to feel embarassed and sad for your opponent, whom you admire to no end.
Nobody's ever won the British Open (5) times in (8) year's...Tom Watson did (1975-1983). He has nothing to say to anyone.
I respectfully disagree with your assesment. The man knows how to play this type of course, and bombing length is not required....
skilled shot selection and execution is the key, and Tom has those attributes.
Tom, still have the baby spikes my wife gave you to autograph as her way of letting me know that she was pregnant with our now 18 year old Eagle Scout at the Western in Butler.
Sure proud of you this week, and especially showing your class and grace, even in defeat....know Bruce is smiling too!
Your friend in Jacksonville Il
Chris Jacques
this guy is the wiorst writer. get another job
this guy is the worst writer. get another job